US TO CONTINUE AIR STRIKES TO SUPPORT AFGHAN FORCES AGAINST TALIBAN, GENERAL SAYS

Mon 26 July 2021:

A regional US general indicated on Sunday that airstrikes will continue to back Afghan forces under attack from the Taliban.

“The United States has increased airstrikes in support of Afghan forces over the last several days and we’re prepared to continue this heightened level of support in the coming weeks if the Taliban continue their attacks,” U.S. Marine General Kenneth “Frank” McKenzie told a news conference in Kabul.

Violence has surged across the country in recent months after the Taliban launched a sweeping assault just days after the US-led foreign forces began their final withdrawal.

McKenzie acknowledged the Afghan government will face tough days ahead.

“The Taliban are attempting to create a sense of inevitability about their campaign. They are wrong,” he said. “Taliban victory is not inevitable,” he said, adding that the US military will continue giving logistical support to the Afghan Air Force even after its foreign forces are expected to leave the country on August 31.

“We will continue to support the Afghan forces even after that August 31 date, it will generally be from over the horizon,” McKenzie said.

“The government of Afghanistan faces a stern test in the days ahead … The Taliban are attempting to create a sense of inevitability about their campaign,” he said.

But he said a Taliban victory was not inevitable and a political solution remained a possibility.

The US military carried out two strikes against Taliban targets on Thursday in support of Afghan forces in the Kandahar province, multiple defense officials said. Three of the last four strikes by the US targeted captured equipment, one defense official said.

A Taliban spokesperson on Friday condemned US airstrikes in Kandahar and Helmand provinces as “barbaric attacks” that “will have consequences.” The spokesperson said, “The Islamic Emirate condemns these barbaric attacks in the strongest terms.”

Foreign troops have been in Afghanistan for nearly 20 years following the US-led invasion launched in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, attacks.

Washington struck a deal with the Taliban in Qatar last year to begin American troops’ withdrawal in return for security guarantees from the armed group and a commitment to kick-start peace talks with the Afghan government.

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